Born January 6, 1914

Deerfield, Michigan

Died February 6, 1991

Los Angeles, California

Television star and producer; founder, St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital

Danny Thomas. Getty Images.

"That's my epitaph. It's right on the cornerstone [of St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital]: Danny Thomas, founder."

Danny Thomas was a television star of the 1950s and 1960s and a producer of such hit television series as The Andy Griffith Show, The Dick Van Dyke Show, Gomer Pyle, and The Mod Squad. His success in television allowed him to keep a vow he made in prayer in 1940, when he was struggling to support his family. Learning that St. Jude was the patron saint of hopeless causes, Thomas prayed to the saint, asking for direction. In return for the saint's help, Thomas vowed to build a shrine for St. Jude. Soon afterward, he had his big break as a performer at a nightclub...